Kakera no Unmei
by RavensFirefly
Summary: Sequel to Gone. A fight with a demon, leads to an argument, which leads to a sudden disappearance, which leads to one very upset hanyou. And just what is all this talk about mates? -Discontinued-
1. Demons and Arguments

AN: Yes! happy dance I've finally gotten around to starting the sequel! - You won't believe the things I've got planned for this story! Heh, well, enjoy the story minna!

Disclaimer: Inuyasha does not belong to me in any way, shape, or form.

"Sssshikon no kakera! Give them to me!" The snake demon hissed.

"Keh! You wish!" Inuyasha growled, as he drew Tetsusaiga.

"Be careful Inuyasha, that demon already has a shard of the Shikon no Tama!" Kagome called to the hanyou.

Sango ran up to stand beside Inuyasha, prepared to use hiraikotsu, "It already has a Jewel Shard? Kagome-chan, stay back! We'll take care of this demon then."

The school girl nodded and looked down to Shippou, who was sitting by her feet, "Let's go, Shippou-chan. We'll let Inuyasha and Sango-chan handle this."

Shippou nodded in a serious matter, as he scurried up to Kagome's shoulder, "Don't worry Kagome, I'll make sure that demon doesn't get near you."

"In that case, I'll help you protect Kagome-sama, Shippou." Miroku said, with a slight smile at Kagome.

Kagome smiled and nodded again, as her and Miroku began to run from the upcoming battle.

"Where are you going, humanssss? Give me the ssshards!" The demon hissed, as it began to slither after Kagome, Miroku, and Shippou.

But the two warriors were not about to let this demon get anywhere near the Shikon shards. Without hesitation, Sango grabbed one of her poison-gas bombs and threw it on the ground directly in the path of the snake.

The snake demon drew back and shook its head violently, the poisons already beginning to sting its eyes and nose, "You foolishhhh ssslayer!!" It yelled angrily, turning to face Sango. It bared its fangs, venom dripping to the ground below it, "You're going to regret thisss!" With that, the demon dove forward, towards the taijiya.

"Stay away from her you over-grown snake! Sankon Tetsusou!!" Inuyasha yelled, slashing through the snakes body with his claws. Sango was too close for him to safely use Tetsusaiga, and he didn't want to take a chance of hurting her. But, his claws worked just as well; he sliced the demon right in half. Without checking to see if the demon was truly dead, he turned to Sango, "Sango, daijoubu ka?"

The taijiya nodded, smiling at him, "Hai, I'm fine, Inuyasha. Arigatou."

The hanyou let out a relieved breath, hearing that.

But his relief was short-lived. A sudden scream pierced through the air, followed shortly by other voices.

"Kagome-sama!"

"Kagome! Ah, Miroku, it's coming back!!"

The hanyou and the taijiya both spun around, only to see that the snake-demon had already pulled itself together with the power of the Shikon shards, and had gone after Kagome's shards.

"Shit! Can't this thing get it through its thick skull that it's not going to get our shards?!" Inuyasha yelled, as he ran after the demon.

"Kirara!" Sango called over to her feline companion, as she ran after Inuyasha.

The fire-cat didn't need any instructions; she knew what Sango wanted her to do. Kirara was engulfed in flames for a couple seconds, as she transformed to her larger form. With an aggravated growl, she ran towards Kagome, and picked the young miko up, out of the demon's path.

Once Kagome was out of danger, Miroku lifted his right hand as he prepared to unleash kazaana. But before he could, the snake-demon whipped around and knocked the monk to the ground.

"If I can't have the ssshards, then I'll just devour you instead!!" It claimed as it lunged towards Miroku.

"Miroku-sama!!" Kagome screamed, watching helplessly from atop Kirara as the demon went for the monk.

'Damn it!' Inuyasha silently cursed. Both he and Sango were too far from them to be able to attack the demon. And he couldn't use Kaze no Kizu without risking hurting Miroku as well. But, that didn't mean they were helpless. "Sango!" He said, glancing to the slayer beside him.

The taijiya nodded, knowing already what Inuyasha wanted, "Houshi-sama, stay down! Hiraikotsu!!" With that, she threw the boomerang-type weapon as hard as she could.

The snake-demon hissed, its eyes flashing dangerously as it turned towards the oncoming weapon. It didn't have time to move aside, and the hiraikotsu sliced cleanly through it.

Once the demon was, once again, cut in half, Kirara landed on the ground nearby. Kagome hopped off her back and ran to it in order to get the Shikon shard it had. Just as she was about to reach for the shard, the demons tail whipped up and hit her to the ground. The sudden impact of the demon caused her to drop the shards that she had. And before anyone could react, the snake-demon's tongue shot out and gathered the shards, pulling them into its mouth. With a laugh, the snake regenerated, then began to slither away.

"Damn it! Kirara!" Sango said, glancing towards the neko. Kirara ran towards her mistress then, after picking her up, went after the snake-demon.

Inuyasha glanced over to Miroku, who was currently beside Kagome trying to get her to stand up. Knowing that the would be okay by themselves for a few minutes, he dashed after Sango, "Sango, matte!"

Sango, meanwhile, was too far ahead to hear Inuyasha calling to her. And only one thing mattered at the moment; getting Kagome's shards back from that demon. She soon saw it in the distance and, drawing her hand back slightly, she once again threw hiraikotsu towards it.

The demon had been able to sense her approach, and turned to face the taijiya, ducking underneath the boomerang at the same time. "You ssshould've just ssstayed back, ssslayer!!" It hissed as it dove forward.

"Sankon Tetsusou!!" Inuyasha suddenly called, jumping in front of Sango and slicing the demon into several pieces.

As soon as Inuyasha had appeared, Sango leapt from Kirara onto the ground. And, once the demon was cut up, she quickly picked up the Jewel Shards, before it could once again regenerate itself. Once the shards were no longer on the ground, the body of the snake disintegrated, fading into nothing.

Sango stood up, turning to face Inuyasha, smiling slightly, "We should get these back to Kagome-chan. That demon probably corrupted them..."

"That can wait." Inuyasha said, looking at her, "What were you doing running off alone? That thing could've hurt you!"

Her smile faded slightly, being replaced with a frown, "What do you mean? It was just one measly demon. I'm a professional demon exterminator, I know what I'm doing."

"The last time you went off to fight 'one measly demon', you nearly got yourself killed!" The hanyou replied, folding his arms across his chest.

"The last time? The last time, it was Naraku, not a lowly snake-demon, Inuyasha!" She said, trying to keep her temper under control.

He was quiet for a few minutes, before uncrossing his arms, "I know that. But you can't be too careful around demons. You don't know what could happen. Look, Sango, I know that fighting demons is your profession, but... I don't want anything to happen to you. I don't like the idea of you running off to fight them alone."

The taijiya sighed, "I know... But, I'm not someone who needs constant supervision. I can take care of myself."

"And when are you going to start depending on others more?!" The hanyou snapped, sounding angrier than he had meant to, "A lot has changed since you first joined us, Sango, so why don't you stop trying to take care of everything on your own?"

"On my own? Since when do I try to take care of everything by myself?" Sango demanded to know. She wanted to keep her temper, especially since she was talking to Inuyasha, but he wasn't making it easy for her.

Inuyasha stuffed his arms into the sleeves of his haori, "Oh, since... forever!"

The slayer sighed in an aggravated manner and looked to the side, "Look, I don't want to argue with you anymore. Since you seem to think that I want to do everything on my own, what do you want me to do?"

"I don't want you to run off by yourself anymore." He said.

"Nani!?" She turned back to him, looking at him in both surprise and anger, "And just what are you going to do if I disagree with that? Are you going to start following me around at all times?"

The hanyou opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, another voice was heard.

"Ano...are you two finished?"

Both warriors turned quickly to find Miroku, carrying Kagome, approaching them.

"Is is possible that you two could continue this conversation elsewhere?" The monk continued, "Kagome-sama seems to have injured her ankle when that demon knocked her down. It would probably be best of we could take her to Kaede-sama..."

Sango glanced to Inuyasha, before crossing her arms and walking towards Miroku and Kagome, "Sure thing, Houshi-sama. Besides, I think we've said everything that needed to be said. Ne, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha scowled, and mumbled something under his breath, but he walked after Sango towards their other two companions.

AN: Yes, an argument to start off the sequel to Gone -; And, just so you know, and this will be explained a little later in the story, but quite some time has passed between this and the timeline of Gone. I'd say about... six-seven months, somewhere around there. Yeah... Anyways, please review - Ja!


	2. Help and Comfort

The walk back to Kaede's was filled, pretty much, with silence. Miroku had offered to carry Kagome back all the way, but Kagome had chosen to ride Kirara instead, saying something along the lines of, "At least Kirara doesn't have any wandering hands..."

Sango and Inuyasha didn't say one word to each other during the walk either. Sango spent the time walking beside Kirara and Kagome, talking to her friend about little things; mostly about how things were back in her own country. Inuyasha, on the other hand, walked behind everyone else, his eyes closed and his arms stuffed in the sleeves of his haori. Miroku tried speaking with him a couple times, but the hanyou only snorted and ignored him.

Finally, the small group arrived at Kaede's village. The elder woman ushered them all into her hut, and listened patiently while Miroku and Kagome explained what had happened. Once they had finished, she nodded, "So, it was just the fall that injured you, Kagome? Are you sure you weren't infected by its venom?"

The young miko nodded, as she tried to situate herself so she was comfortable, without hurting her ankle more, "I'm sure, Kaede-obasan. It just wanted the Shikon no kakera, and once I dropped them, it left me alone. It didn't bite me, or anything like that. It would've bitten Miroku-sama, though, if Sango-chan and Inuyasha hadn't been there."

"Is that so?" Kaede asked, looking up to Inuyasha and Sango, "It sounds as though you two make quite the team."

"Keh! It's not like we can be a team if someone won't stop running off all the time." Inuyasha mumbled, crossing his arms.

And Sango was ready with a comeback of her own, "And some people need to learn to let their team-mate do things on their own as well."

"How can that happen if the person won't even listen to her team-mate?!" The hanyou asked, looking to Sango.

"And how can you expect that someone to listen, when her team-mate won't go any way but his way?!" She replied.

Inuyasha frowned as he uncrossed his arms and hit his hands on the floor, "She should stop being so stubborn!"

The taijiya turned and looked at him, "He should stop being so protective!"

"P-protective? What do you mean protective?" He asked.

"Treating me like a child who can't take care of herself, following me whenever I go to fight a demon. Need I go on?" She said.

"I worry about you!" He said, turning away from her and shutting his eyes.

Silence seemed to fill the small hut as Kagome, Miroku, Shippou, and Kaede all looked at the hanyou in surprise. Sango, however, didn't seem to impressed by what he had said. After a minute or two, Kagome leaned closer to Miroku, "I think Sango-chan has a point...Inuyasha has seemed over-protective of her lately." She whispered.

The monk nodded slightly, "Indeed he has. Maybe its just the way he is, but Inuyasha has definitely been acting different with Sango." He replied, whispering as well.

Shippou jumped up onto Miroku's shoulder and leaned closer to the two humans, wanting to be a part of their talk as well, "Inuyasha wants to protect Sango, but Sango can protect herself."

Kaede coughed into her hand, wanting to turn attention away from the tension that was in the room, then turned to Kagome, "Kagome, is your ankle still bothering you?"

Kagome turned to Kaede and nodded, "Hai...I probably just sprained it though. You don't have to worry."

"Well, at least let me mix up some medicine for the pain. It won't take too long." Kaede said, smiling warmly at the group of travelers.

Kagome smiled and gave the okay. Kaede then went outside to gather the necessary herbs. "While I get these, could someone please get some water from the stream for me?" She called into the hut.

"I can do that." Sango said, standing up and walking towards the door. Glancing back to Inuyasha, she then added, "That is, unless a certain someone thinks I might not be able to handle it alone."

"Keh!" The hanyou laid down on his side, waving dismissively at her, "Go on. Just don't get attacked by some water demon, 'cause I won't be there to help you."

"Inuyasha...baka!" The slayer muttered, clutching her hand into a fist, "I can take care of myself!" With that, she stormed out of the hut, grabbing a bucket in the process.

Once Sango was gone, Kagome looked over at Inuyasha, "Inuyasha, do you have to keep upsetting Sango-chan like that?"

Shippou jumped down from Miroku's shoulder, and made his way over to the hanyou, "Really, Inuyasha! What's with the possessive streak all of a sudden?"

"It's none of your business!" The hanyou spat as he switched sides, lying so his back was to the others.

Kaede returned about that time. She settled down beside Kagome and began to mash some of the herbs in a bowl, "Once Sango returns with the water, we'll pour a little in this, then we can rub this on your ankle. It should help with the pain."

The school girl nodded and smiled, "Great."

...Silence...

Minutes passed, and no one said anything.

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.

That was soon the only sound that filled the hut, as Inuyasha began to tap his fingers against the floor.

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.

"Sango sure is taking a long time." The kitsune stated as he looked towards the door, looking for any sign of the taijiya.

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.

"You've got that right, Shippou-chan." Kagome agreed.

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.

"She's probably doing it on account of Inuyasha." Miroku said, glancing at Inuyasha.

Tap. Tap... Growl.

"And just what is that supposed to mean?!" The hanyou growled, turning over to face them again.

Miroku shook his head, "Nothing at all, Inuyasha."

"Only that Sango-chan is just trying to make you worry." Kagome said, looking at him.

"But Inuyasha won't fall for that, will you, Inuyasha?" Shippou questioned, hopping onto the hanyou's head.

Inuyasha frowned as he stood up. He picked Shippou up off his head and dropped him to the ground, "I have to check on something." With that, he calmly walked outside.

The others, who were left inside, all looked at each other and let out a collective sigh. It was as if he really thought they didn't know where he was really going...

--

__

'Sango...what the hell are you doing?' The hanyou wondered silently, as he walked towards the stream. _'You're making it look like I'm the bad guy here... Why... ' _He stopped walking, and let his thoughts trail off, as he neared the stream. His ears twitched slightly hearing a small sound. Cautiously, Inuyasha crept forward, being careful to keep quiet. He moved behind a tree, and peeked out from around it.

Sango was sitting near the edge of the stream, looking at the waters surface.

Kirara sat by her side, looking up at the taijiya with her large, crimson eyes.

Sango stroked the neko's head gently, looking over at her, "I'm sorry, Kirara. I don't mean to be such a bother to anyone, especially Inuyasha, but... I don't know what's wrong with me lately."

Inuyasha felt a pain grow in his chest, as he listened to Sango speak. Had he really been the one to make her feel that way? Slowly, he stepped form behind the tree and moved to stand behind her, "There's nothing wrong with you, Sango." He said quietly.

The taijiya jumped slightly, and looked back at him, "Inuyasha... I-I didn't know you were there." She said, turning around again and wiping her eyes, trying to hide the fact that she had been crying.

Inuyasha kneeled down behind her and put his hands on her shoulders, "I'm so sorry... I didn't mean to upset you."

Sango shook her head slightly, "Y-you didn't upset me. Don't worry about it."

The hanyou sighed and hugged her shoulders, pulling her back against him, "Don't lie to me. I head what you said to Kirara, and... and I know something's bothering you."

"How do you know that?" She asked curiously, glancing over her shoulder at him.

He shook his head slightly before resting his chin on her shoulder, and leaning his head against hers, "I don't know, really... I can just... feel it, if that makes any sense."

"I guess it makes some sense." She replied, "And... I wasn't lying... You didn't upset me. I did it myself. I'm sorry about earlier... I know you worry about me, just like I worry about you. I just... I don't know what's wrong with me."

He tightened his embrace on her, "There's nothing wrong with you. You're a fighter, simple as that. You have a fighting spirit, and that's something I've always loved about you."

She smiled slightly, "Always? Even though our first encounter wasn't very... nice?"

He chuckled and kissed her cheek, "Yeah, Sango. Always."

She sighed contently, remaining quiet.

Inuyasha suddenly fell back, recieving a small gasp of surprise from Sango since he pulled her back with him. "Let's stay here for a while. The others will be fine by themselves. Besides... I miss being with just you. It's not exactly easy with Miroku, Kagome, and Shippou around all the time."

Sango smiled, moving off of him; choosing to lie beside him instead. She nodded slightly before reaching up to toy with the bead of his rosary, "I know what you mean... But we can't just leave them, or expect them to leave us. We need to finish gathering the Shikon shards so we can finally defeat Naraku. Things will settle down once we finally kill him."

The hanyou nodded. He would never just forget Naraku; not after everything he had done. First he had killed Kikyou, and then Kohaku. No, Inuyasha wouldn't ever think about settling down without first killing Naraku. "Yeah, I know." He said quietly, closing his eyes.

"But, we don't need to talk about that right now." The taijiya said, curling closer to him. "Let's stay out here a few more minutes. I don't want the others to start worrying too much."

He grinned, "They'd start worrying even if we were only gone for two seconds. But, whatever you say."

She closed her eyes and laid her head against his chest, "Good."

--------------------

AN: I'm so sorry that it took so long to get this chapter out! I had it written, then I had to go and re-write it because I decided to change what happened. I'll wait to do what I originally planned a little later, so no worries.

Also, meant to put this in the last chapter, but I forgot. 'Kakera no Unmei', if you didn't know, means 'Shards of Destiny'.

And, as always, please review. Ja!


	3. Relaxation and Embarrassments

AN: Thank everyone for the kind reviews, and I really, REALLY must apologize for not updating this for a long time. I caught a bad case of writers block, and I seriously considered deleting this. But, then, while working out another story I had planned (which was also an Inu/San), I suddenly got the idea to just have that story as a chapter for this one, and ta-daa! No more writers block! Hurrah! So, yes, I know what I'm going to do now, so expect updates to come sooner!

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The sun continued to shine down on the two as they silently lay near the water. Sango, despite what she had said to Inuyasha moments before, had dozed off; her body still curled contently near the hanyou. Inuyasha realized this by the way her breathing had leveled to a slow, yet steady rhythm. And also because the 'few minutes' she had spoken of, had somehow managed to draw out into several minutes. Not that he minded, of course. It wasn't easy to find time to spend alone when one had three other companions around all the time. And, even when they had managed to get away from said companions, it seemed as though that would be the time that a demon decided to attack. So, between Kagome, Miroku, Shippou, demons, jewel shards, and the constant hunt for Naraku, it was nearly impossible to get even one minute of time to themselves.

A small sound brought Inuyasha out of his thoughts, as he turned his head to see what it was.

Kirara was standing there, nudging the bucket Sango had brought to get the water for Kaede in, slightly. As the fire-cat saw Inuyasha looking at her, she sat down and looked back at him; her large, crimson eyes blinked once as she gave him a look that seemed to say 'did you forget?'.

The hanyou grinned slightly as he reached up and patted the neko's head, "Alright, alright, Kirara. I'll get the water for Kaede-baba and Kagome." He said quietly, not wanting to wake Sango. Then, still being careful to not disturb the sleeping slayer, he took the bucket and got up. And, once the bucket was filled, he was back at Sango's side. He looked down at her for a moment, thinking. He could return to the hut and be back in only a few seconds, if he ran, but he didn't want to leave her; if only for a few seconds. Sure, he knew full well that she was capable of taking care of herself, but he couldn't help but feel that he needed to protect her. It wasn't a choice, like when he chose to protect Kagome, or Shippou, or anyone else. With Sango, it was different; it wasn't just a choice, it was instinct. He _had_ to do it.

Blinking, he smiled at the taijiya's sleeping form, _'I guess she's right.' _He thought, laughing a bit, _'I guess I am protective of her.' _Inuyasha shook his head in amusement, before leaning down to pick Sango up, "Come on, koishii, lets go back to the others." He whispered. Another smile crossed his lips as she curled closer to him, once she was in his arms. Then, looking down to Kirara, he motioned to the bucket, "Get that, would you?" He asked.

Kirara looked up at him, tilting her head to the side slightly. She mewed, and then walked a circle around the bucket, before sitting down and mewing again.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, "Don't give me that, Kirara. I know it's the same size as you, while you're like that. Why don't you transform, then carry it back?"

The fire-cat looked at him for a moment, before looking to the side and yawning. When Inuyasha repeated himself, the neko merely scratched at an ear and ignored him.

He frowned and sighed, frustrated, "Kirara, would you stop ignoring me?" Then, seeing that she wasn't going to stop, he finally gave in, "Would you _please_ carry the bucket back to the hut?"

The neko gave a triumphant, "Mew!" And jumped up, instantly transforming and picking the bucket up in her mouth. With a feline-ish grin, she trotted past the hanyou and taijiya, back towards Kaede's hut.

Inuyasha mumbled something under his breath, and followed after her. It was something Kirara had started not too long after Sango and Inuyasha had gotten together; when outside of battle, she wouldn't do what he asked unless he asked nicely. Both Inuyasha and Sango had talked to her about it, but the feline was intent on continuing her ways.

"Can you blame her, Inu-chan?" Sango asked suddenly, surprising the hanyou carrying her.

Inuyasha blinked, then shook off the surprise and snorted, "Keh. Why can't she just do what I ask without me saying 'please' and all that shit? Jeez..."

The taijiya smiled and laughed, "Well, since we're not in a battle, she likes to be asked to do things nicely. In battle, there's no time for such things, but outside of it... she likes it if you have some manners."

"But... why?" He asked, wrinkling his nose slightly, "Why does it matter if I'm like that or not?" He was silent for a few seconds, and then, "How do you want me to act?"

"Me?" She blinked, and looked up at him, "Ano... well, I..."

He grinned and donned a very uncharacteristic teasing look on his face, "You know, Sango, be careful of what you say, I wouldn't want my hands to slip and drop you by accident."

The taijiya's eyes widened slightly as she instantly held on to him tighter, "You wouldn't!"

His grin only grew at her response, as he purposely loosened his hold on her, "Wouldn't I?"

She shook her head frantically, holding onto him tighter, "No, you wouldn't! If you do, I'll... I'll..."

"You'll..." He prompted, raising an eyebrow.

"I'll, ano... I'll have Kagome-chan osuwari you!" She stated, nodding slightly.

He winched and dropped the charade, tightening his hold again, "Okay, okay, no need to do that, koishii." He grinned, then added, "And just so you'd know, I'd never drop you."

She nodded and smiled slightly, "I know, Inu-chan, I know."

"Finally!" Came Shippou's voice a moment later, "We thought something had happened to you two, especially since Kirara came back without you!" He cried, as he ran outside of the hut to meet them.

"Hmph. What could happen? Kirara would've let you know if something happened!" Inuyasha retorted, walking past Shippou and into the hut.

"Sango-chan, are you alright?" Kagome asked worriedly, seeing Inuyasha carrying her.

Sango blinked, then laughed, a little embarrassed, as she waved her hand slightly, "Oh, hai, I'm fine. I just... fell asleep, that's all. But Inuyasha and Kirara's arguing woke me up."

"Oh..." The school-girl said quietly. Then, giving Inuyasha a confused look, she added, "What were you and Kirara arguing about?"

Inuyasha sat Sango down and crossed his arms, muttering something along the lines of, "Something stupid... don't worry about it."

Shippou looked up at Inuyasha and frowned slightly, "Then at least tell us what took you so long? What were you two doing?"

"Indeed, we're all a bit curious." Miroku added, also turning to look at the couple, "What, exactly, were you two doing?" And, though he had only asked the same thing as Shippou, he had that lecherous grin written on his face; telling them that he had his own ideas.

"H-Houshi-sama!" Sango stuttered, blushing profusely as she covered her face with her hands in an attempt to hide the blush, "We were just talking!"

"Yeah, you perverted houshi!" Inuyasha added, though he did a much better job at hiding his embarrassment, "Besides, why should you care what we were doing?" Then, almost as an afterthought, he quickly added, "Th-though we just talked!"

"Mou, really Miroku-sama!" Kagome scolded, holding her hands over Shippou's ears, much to the young kitsune's protests, "Saying such things while Shippou-chan is here. He's still just a child!"

"But, Kagome-sama, I was only repeating Shippou's question." The monk replied with his most innocent smile, "And aren't you the least bit curious as to what--"

"Quiet!" Kagome said, accenting the word with a jab to his ribs. Then, uncovering Shippou's ears, she smiled and said, "Arigatou for getting the water for Kaede-obasan though."

"Hai, thank you very much." Kaede added, as she rubbed some of her herbal mixture onto Kagome's ankle, "There, Kagome does that help at all?"

The school-girl nodded, "Hai, it does." Then, looking around at the others, she continued, "If its not better by tomorrow, I'll go back home and see if mom knows anything to help. But I'm sure I'll be fine. We need to continue on our journey though. That last lead we got on the whereabouts of a jewel shard sounded promising."

Sango nodded in agreement, "It really did. And, if that village really does have a jewel shard in it, we need to get to it before Naraku or one of his detachments."

"We'll get it." Inuyasha added in a 'that's a fact' tone, "There's no way I'll let that bastard or anyone else get to it before we do."

--

AN: Will they get to the shard before Naraku? Or is there even a shard in this village they speak of? Will this story ever turn out like the summary said? I won't say anything about the first two questions, but the last one is a definite yes! Trust me.


	4. Battles and Changes

Night fell and morning seemed to come too quickly. By mid-afternoon, the small group had set out for the village that supposedly held a fragment of the Shikon Jewel. Kagome was fine; her ankle was a little sore, but nothing unbearable.

The miko, along with Sango and Shippou, rode atop Kirara as the fire-cat flew ahead of Inuyasha and Miroku.

And, really, they could've already been at the village... if Inuyasha and Sango hadn't started another argument. It had started simply enough; Sango had suggested that her and Kagome go ahead of Inuyasha and Miroku, since Kagome could sense the jewel shards, and from the air, they'd be able to spot any dangers that could lie ahead. Inuyasha, however, had said he didn't want her going ahead because it could be putting _her_ in danger. Everything else said was about the same as the argument that had occurred the previous day; Inuyasha was too protective. Sango needed to depend on others more. And everything like that. It had finally come to an end with Sango declaring, "I'm going ahead and that's it!" And with Inuyasha replying with, "Fine!" Maybe it wasn't the most original of come-backs, but Inuyasha hadn't been in the mood to argue. That, and Kagome had pointed out that if they didn't get going, Naraku would get the jewel shard before them.

Once they had split up, Miroku had tried to converse with Inuyasha, but the hanyou growled dangerously at the monk; a clear sign that he was not in the mood for talk.

Ahead of the two guys, Kagome wasn't having any better luck with Sango. The miko had tried to convince her friend that Inuyasha's intentions were good, but the taijiya wasn't up for much conversation on _that _subject.

Thankfully enough, however, they soon arrived at their destination; Sango, Kagome, and Shippou, along with Kirara, arrived first as was planned. Miroku and Inuyasha arrived a few minutes later.

The village was a mess, though. Huts were torn down, and debris lay everywhere. The group feared that Naraku had, in fact, beat them to it, but upon talking with the villagers, they discovered that it had been a bear-demon that ransacked their village, and taken the fragment. So, they left the village, traveling in the direction that the villagers had said they saw the demon go.

It wasn't long before Kagome began to sense the presence of a jewel shard, and a few moments later, they saw the demon ahead. Now, bears were already a decent size, but this one was twice that, due to the power of the jewel shard it carried.

Inuyasha growled slightly as he drew Tetsusaiga, "You guys stay back here, this won't take long." He said, as he ran forward, towards the bear.

"Be careful!" Kagome warned, "That demon already has two shards! One on each of its front legs!"

"What?!" Inuyasha asked, surprised, as he looked towards the miko, "How in the hell did it get a hold of _two_ shards?"

"Why are you asking me?" Kagome questioned. Then, with a gasp, she quickly added, "Inuyasha, look out!"

The hanyou's attention quickly snapped back to the bear-demon, but it was too late; a huge paw hit him, sending him into a tree.

He hit the tree, and a sickening crack filled the air. Though no one could tell if the crack came from the tree, or Inuyasha himself.

"Inuyasha!!" Sango yelled. Arguments or not, she still cared deeply for the hanyou. Without a second thought, she lifted hiraikotsu up, and flung it towards the demon.

The large, boomerang-type weapon sliced cleanly thorough the air then, because the bear was standing on its hind legs, cut through its right, front leg.

The demon roared in pain, but it wasn't long before the arm had reattached itself to the body, since there was a jewel shard in said arm. And, before hiraikotsu could make a full turn and return to Sango's hand, the demon hit it with its other arm, sending it to the ground a distance away from the taijiya.

"Damn it..." The taijiya whispered as she followed her weapons movements with her eyes. Though, as soon as it had hit the ground, she turned back to the demon and, jumping off of Kirara, began to run towards it, drawing her katana.

"D-don't!" Inuyasha said shakily, through clenched teeth as he tried to stand up. "It's... too dangerous!" He continued, winching.

Before he could say anything else, or readjust his hold on Tetsusaiga, the bear-demon turned on him again. The huge paw came down on him a second time, but this time, it didn't let up. The bear continued to press his paw down, right on Inuyasha's chest; every ounce of the massive beast intent on crushing the hanyou beneath it.

Inuyasha grabbed the bear-demons paw in his clawed hands, trying his best to push the monster off of him; but to no avail. The more he struggled, the harder the demon pressed onto him, until finally... Inuyasha stopped moving.

Sango, who had been momentarily paralyzed due to her surprise and fear at the sudden scene, suddenly snapped back to action. "Inuyasha!!" She screamed, her voice filled with fear and slight anger. Forgetting what the hanyou had said to her a moment earlier, she ran forward and, at the same time, threw her chain towards the bear-demon. The chain wrapped around the bear's arm, and Sango jerked back as hard as she could on the end that she still held.

The bear gave a half-growl, half-roar and turned towards Sango.

Seeing the demon leave Inuyasha, the taijiya looked over to the fallen hanyou, hoping to see him get up, or at least move.

But she quickly realized how big of a mistake it had been to let herself get distracted. This was obvious because the bear-demon suddenly pulled back on the chain end that was wrapped around his leg. Because Sango still held the other end, and because she had been momentarily distracted, she was caught off guard, and the sudden jerk on the chain pulled her forward and to the ground.

The taijiya quickly rolled back onto her back, ready to get to her feet once more. But, it was too late. The demon was already only a few feet from her; back on all four of its legs. Before she could get up, the bear had a paw on her leg; its claws digging in and puncturing through the armor that protected her shins. She didn't even had time to think about the pain, before the bear was pulling her closer and closer. It raised it's other front leg, prepared to make the final blow...

"Oi, bakemono."

The bear-demon stopped, lowering its paw to the ground again, as it looked over its shoulder.

Sango too, peered around the demon.

Inuyasha stood, at the same spot where he had only moments ago seemed lifeless; his head bent slightly, so that his bangs covered his eyes. He slowly lifted a hand, flexing his claws and cracking his knuckles as he gave an eerie chuckle.

As he lifted his head, Sango couldn't help but gasp at the sight a little ways away, _'Inuyasha... no...'_

Inuyasha laughed again, his lips curling back into a mocking smile as his red eyes narrowed slightly, "You want to have some fun?"

AN: Yes! Its demon-mode Inuyasha! I can't help it; I love him in that form. Why? I don't know.

Oh! And, in case you're wondering, yes, Sango does have a chain. I can only remember seeing her use it twice, as of this moment, but its there.


	5. Fear and Attacks

The bear-demon turned to face Inuyasha fully, leaving Sango for the time being. It growled, then immediately began charging at the transformed-hanyou.

Inuyasha remained where he was, that mocking smile still written on his face. Just when it seemed as though the demon would run right into him, he jumped into the air. And, upon landing on the ground once again, he swung around and slashed at the bear's legs. His claws connected with the flesh of its left, back leg; causing the creature to falter slightly and roar out in pain.

The bear-demon regained its balance, and turned to face Inuyasha once again; its eyes flashing dangerously.

The transformed-hanyou merely laughed again, as he held up a clawed hand, which now had some of the bears blood on it, "You'll have to do better than that."

__

'He's going to get himself killed!' Sango thought, as she watched the scene before her. Glancing around the battle field, her eyes soon fell on hiraikotsu, _'If I could just get to it...' _Unfortunately, though, her weapon was on the other site of the current battle site; and that would be one long run, especially when she'd have to make sure she knew where the bear-demon and Inuyasha were while doing so.

"Sango-chan, are you alright?" Kagome asked suddenly.

Sango jumped slightly, surprised, and turned to see Kagome kneeling beside her. She finally managed to give a short nod, "Hai, but... I'm worried about Inuyasha."

Kagome nodded slightly, "Me too..."

"It's time to end this!" Inuyasha yelled suddenly, pulling all attention back to the fight at hand, "You may have the jewel shards inside you, but you're still a worthless demon!" He continued, running towards the bear-demon and slashing at it again and again.

Under the constant attack of the vicious claws, the two jewel shards finally flew from the demons arms, and landed on the ground a few feet away. Once the fragments left its body, the bear fell to the ground before slowly dissolving away into nothing.

Inuyasha laughed once again, examining his blood-covered claws and smiling in malicious delight; seemingly content about what he had just done. Then, he slowly turned his head to look at his fellow companions, "Who's next?"

"H-h-he doesn't recognize us!" Shippou cried as his little paws clutched onto Miroku's robes, "Why doesn't he remember us?"

"Inuyasha, no!" Sango shouted, as she stood up and ran to the hanyou, "Inuyasha, please! You... you can't stay like this. This isn't you!"

"Sango-chan, get back! It's not safe!!" Kagome called, afraid that Inuyasha, in this transformed state, would do something to harm her friend.

And perhaps Sango should've listened to the miko. Because, only a few seconds later, Inuyasha lashed out at the taijiya. And Miroku, Kagome, and Shippou could only watch in horror, as the transformed-hanyou grabbed a hold of Sango's neck.

Dark eyes widened in surprise and fear, as Sango instantly grabbed Inuyasha's wrists, trying desperately to get him to let go.

But her attempts were useless. Inuyasha just stared at her, with those blood-red eyes of his. The more she struggled, the tighter he held onto her.

For a couple, brief seconds, the taijiya's eyes left the form of the hanyou holding her, and looked behind him, to where Kagome, Miroku, and Shippou were.

Shippou was beside Miroku, his face buried in the monks robes. Miroku had taken hold of Kagome, his arms slipping around her waist to keep her from running closer to the hanyou and taijiya. And Kagome was struggling to get loose from his grasp, shouting things that Sango couldn't quite understand.

Turning her attention back to Inuyasha, Sango once again pulled on his wrists, trying to get him to loosen his grasp, but it was pointless.

She finally stopped struggling against him. Slowly, she began moving her hands from his wrist, and up his arms. Her vision began to get blurry and dark as she struggled to move her hands to his face. Once there, her fingers brushed against his cheek softly as she managed to mouth his name. Tears stung the corners of her eyes, blurring her vision even more. And then, her eyes closed.

Inuyasha was still staring at her, growing slightly as she stopped her futile struggling. But as she had stroked his cheek, his growling stopped and his red-eyes had widened slightly. And then, when he saw her lips move as she silently said his name, he closed his eyes and shook his head slightly. When his eyes had opened again, they were back to their original golden color.

It only took a second for him to realize just what his demon-blood had caused him to do, and he immediately let go of Sango. Her body fell limply to the ground, and he watched in stunned silence as she lay motionless where she fell.

__

'Sango...' Her name ran though his mind as he kneeled beside her, watching her for any movements; any signs of life.

"Sango-chan!!" Kagome cried out from behind them.

But the hanyou didn't even look back at her, his eyes were locked on Sango, as he silently pleaded for her not to be dead.

And then... a gasp, followed by a series of small, strained coughs. Another gasp. Her eyes opened. More coughing, and slowly, she pushed herself to a sitting position. She kept one hand on the ground to steady herself, and the other rose to rub her neck.

When she didn't look at him, Inuyasha reached out to place a hand on her shoulder. But the second he touched her, she jerked back, as though she had just been burned.

Her face, slowly tilted upwards until she was once again looking at Inuyasha. And what he saw caused an ache to rise in his chest. Even though he was no longer in his transformed state, even though the demon blood was no longer keeping any rational thought from entering his mind, she was scared. Fear; plain and simple. That was the emotion showing within her eyes.

"Sango..." He said her name in an uncharacteristically quiet tone as he once again reached out to her. This time, she flinched, but she didn't pull away.

"Inu...yasha." She began quietly, her voice slightly scratchy, "I didn't mean... S-sorry..."

The hanyou said nothing, but shook his head slightly. She was apologizing to him? She, who had nearly been killed, was apologizing to him, who had been the one to nearly kill her? He gave her shoulder a short squeeze as he looked at her, "Sango, don't... I was--"

"Inuyasha, just stop." She said suddenly, interrupting him. Looking away from his face, she pulled back from his grasp and slowly stood up, "Just... don't."

Inuyasha stood up as well, his eyes narrowing slightly; a subtle way to show that he was concerned. "What do you mean? Do you think I did that on purpose? Do you think I really want to hurt you?"

She shook her head, but immediately winched and began rubbing her neck again, "N-no... No, of course I don't think that, Inuyasha."

"Then what _do_ you think?" He asked, wanting to know why she seemed to be upset with him.

"I don't know... Nothing. Just... forget it." She replied quietly, walking past him in the direction of Miroku and Kagome.

He stopped her by grabbing her arm, "Wait! Don't just walk away from me, Sango. What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" She repeated his question back to him, as if the question had an obvious answer, "What's wrong? Inuyasha, you nearly _killed_ me. That's what's wrong." She closed her eyes and sighed and, without giving him a chance to reply, she continued in a calmer, gentler tone, "Look... I know what happened... I know you didn't have any control over it. But I've... it's like..." The taijiya sighed once again, looking at him, "I'm sorry, Inuyasha. I just... give me a little time to think things over, okay? Please?"

He looked at her, remaining quiet for a few minutes. Finally, he gave a defeated sigh and nodded, "Alright." He replied simply, letting go of her, "If that's what you really want..."

Sango smiled slightly, leaning up to press a short kiss to his cheek. And, under normal circumstances, he would've probably been flustered at her action, but, given the way he was currently feeling, he could care less as to who was watching.

"Thank you." She whispered to him, before turning and walking back to their other companions.

Inuyasha just watched silently as she walked away. The ache in his chest seemed to grow with every step she took. He knew that she hadn't meant anything by what she had said. Considering that he had attacked her, yeah, she deserved some time to think. But still... the hanyou couldn't shake the feeling that she was somehow pulling away from him. Taking a deep breath, he too headed back towards Kagome and Miroku.

By the time he reached them, Kagome was already asking Sango questions; making sure she wasn't too injured by the encounter. The taijiya was doing her best to sooth her friends worries, though Kagome kept insisting that they let Kaede, or someone else as experienced in medicinal herbs, take a look. Once Inuyasha was there, the miko looked to him, silently asking for help in convincing Sango to let someone check her over. But the hanyou only 'keh'-ed and looked away.

Kagome frowned, and turned back to Sango, "Okay, Sango-chan, if you really think you're fine... But at least take it easy for a couple days?"

"Of course, Kagome-chan." Sango replied quietly, before glancing to Inuyasha once more and offering him an apologetic, small smile.

Inuyasha looked at her silently for a moment, then turned and crossed his arms, "Lets get back to Kaede-baba's village then." He said simply, starting to walk in the direction of said village.

AN: Well, this didn't take too long to write. And, I don't have much to say about it, so until next time! Ja!


End file.
